Underwater Hippo

The dream this morning takes place in a sewer tunnel. I am walking down the tunnel in ankle deep water. As I walk forward toward the light I see a small, but deep pool, to the right side of the tunnel. The water here as a sort of milky appearance. I think this look is due to sand or chalk being stirred up in the water from below. There seem to be things swimming around in this pool.

I am carrying a fly fishing rod with me.  I flick the fly in the direction of the pool. Suddenly, I see a huge fish rise up from the depths try to take a bite. The fish must be a muskellunge judging by the size and shape of it. However, something much bigger rises up to take the lure. It looks something like a small baby hippo. It has it's head turned away from me and it's rear end facing me. I cannot exactly make out what the creature is. The skin of it glistens and is slivery grey in colour. It reminds me of a dolphin. The legs and torso are just like that of a hippo. Something about the back of the head and the ears make me think this thing is cross between a pig and hippo with the skin of a dolphin.

I am standing behind the animal. I reach around to the mouth and handily pull the lure from it's mouth with no problem. The monstrous hippo-pig makes no sound or movement. I don't think it felt the hook at all and then I wake up from the dream. .

This is such a bizarre dream.  Clearly, this is an exploration of the unconscious. I am heading into the light. I am fishing for answers to life's meaning and trying to understand more about what makes me tick.

The hippopotamus symbolises aggression, being territorial, perhaps having low self esteem, being sensitive to how other might perceive my weakness, having a low self image, emotional turbulence, feeling inferior to those around me both mentally and physically.

When the hippo looks away from me and I cannot look into it's eyes and judge it's emotional or physical state. I almost get the sense the thing is autistic. It does not feel any pain or emotion. Perhaps it is depressed? It does not behave like a normal hippo.

The location of the underground sewer tunnel suggests a need or desire to go deep, and to flush away the waste in my psyche. There is a need to catch some meaning out of this experience. I am angling for something significant to come to the surface.

I guess I am being called to do some self reflection in all this. Do I have self esteem issues with my appearance or how I think? Do others unintentionally cause me to feel this way?

I feel like I can identify with the hippo. I have been putting on weight. I am not as fit or attractive as I used to be. Should I care? Should I try to do something about this? Apparently my unconscious persona is not happy right now about this.  To be frank I am not feeling motivated to do anything about the issue. I work everyday to exhaustion and take no days off. I wish I was more rested and could spend some quality time and effort on giving this dream deeper and more interesting analysis. I am disappointed with myself.